The Beginning Of Something Good
by GirloftheBlueFiresofNever
Summary: Moony, Padfoot, Prongs, and Lily in their early years at Hogwarts.
1. The Train Ride

The Beginning of Something Good  
  
Disclaimer: Okay, I know I own nothing, you know I own nothing, and I'm sure not making any money, so the only people who are making me do this are the lawyers. Did you know that in French, lawyer and avocado are the same word? So either lawyers are avocados, or avocados are lawyers, and that's just plain wrong. Okay, I'm shutting up now. ON WITH THE STORY!  
  
Chapter 1: The Train Ride  
  
A short, scared-looking little girl of about eleven stared at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. After staring at it for nearly thirty minutes, Lily Evans was still puzzled. Her parents had dropped her off forty minutes before she was scheduled to leave for Hogwarts to learn Witchcraft. She was sure she had seen people disappearing into the barrier, and had assumed that that was how one was supposed to get to platform nine and three quarters. Now, however she wasn't so sure. It was nearing 11 o'clock, and she was very nervous, what if she missed the train?  
"Hey, Red! You're blocking the passage!" Shouted a rather tall, gangly boy, who was flanked by another gangly boy, this one with glasses, and a slightly shorter boy with brown hair and amber eyes. All three carried owls, and the short one pushed an overloaded trolley.  
"Sirius, you know nothing about girls." Stated the amber-eyed one. "I'm sorry, but you're in our way, if you wouldn't mind letting us through, we'd be very grateful."  
"Why would you want to get through to the barrier?" asked Lily. Could these be wizards? The brown-haired one seemed nice but what was his name, Sirius or something, was definitely not. The one with glasses hadn't said anything yet, so she wasn't sure.  
"Oh, good, job, Remus," said the one with crooked glasses exasperatedly, "a muggle!"  
"Only by birth," muttered the girl, and to the boys, "I am not! I'm going to Hogwarts, obviously same as you."  
"So why aren't you on the platform with the others?" asked Remus quietly.  
"I don't know how to get through the barrier." She answered sheepishly.  
"Well, let's get going, we don't want to miss that train," bellowed Sirius, "James, we'll go first, Remus, you escort our lady friend whose name I didn't catch," he looked pointedly at Lily as he and James disappeared into the barrier.  
"That's because I never dropped it," said Lily, finding what little attitude she had.  
"Well, we'd better go," said Remus.  
"Um, how do we get through, a spell?" Lily was still puzzled.  
"No, you just walk through," reassured Remus.  
"So you're expecting me to walk into a wall?" asked Lily skeptically.  
"Better run if you're nervous." Remus grinned at her.  
"Am I the only one who finds this weird?"  
"Probably not, but we'd better hurry." Remus looked at his watch, "Five till!" He said nervously. Lily still hesitated. "Just walk."  
"I am not walking into a wall."  
"Oh, yes you are," he said grabbing her hand and running toward the barrier. Lily screamed as she was pulled through some sort of portal onto the platform.  
"That wasn't so bad now, was it?" asked Sirius with an impish smile on his face.  
"What took you two so long?" asked James.  
"Sorry about that, I was afraid we were going to miss the train," apologized Remus.  
Lily, still shaken, said nothing, just picked up her trunk and got on the train. She walked up and down the hallways between the compartments looking for a seat. Finding none in the first car, she crossed to the next, feeling somewhat discouraged.  
After four more cars, she was in the last car that first years could sit in. Sighing, she opened the last compartment, hoping with all her might that there would be no people in it at all. Much to her dismay, there were three. Sirius and Remus sat across from each other, playing chess, and James sat next to Sirius, reading a book.  
Only because there's nowhere else to sit, she thought, and sat next to Remus. She pulled a book from her bag, and began reading.  
About 90 minutes later, Sirius announced, "Well, we'd better change boys, well get there soon." He then proceeded to pull off his sweater, then his shirt, and Lily was just about to make her presence known when Remus tapped Sirius on the arm and pointed to a blushing Lily. "Sirius, there is a lady present."  
Sirius blushed, and pulled his shirt on quickly. "A lady whose name we have yet to learn."  
"My name is Lily Evans, and I already know all your names." Lily said tiredly as she picked up her robes and made her way to the bathroom, making sure she knocked before she entered upon her return.  
It was getting a bit darker outside, and Lily was very tired, having got up at 5 that morning. She curled up against the separating walls and was soon asleep. Sirius and James were also napping, leaving Remus alone with his thoughts. He felt strangely protective of her, but he wasn't sure why. Maybe because she seemed point-blank scared of Sirius and James, or perhaps he was guilty about yanking her through the barrier. Deciding not to worry about it, he leaned against the window and fell into a restless sleep. 


	2. Alone?

The Beginning Of Something Good  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own squat. We all know that. ON WITH THE STORY!  
  
Chapter 2: Alone?  
  
Lily surveyed her surroundings carefully, five tables, one at the front of the room, four running parallel to each other and perpendicular to the one at the front. She looked up, there seemed to be no ceiling at all, just the sky above them, at this moment, clear and starry. A stern woman who had introduced herself as Professor McGonagall called for their attention. Lily saw a hat sitting on a three-legged stool ahead of them.  
"Abbot, Thomas." The bespectacled professor called. A short, black-haired boy walked up and put the old hat on his head. To Lily's surprise, the hat yelled out, "HUFFLEPUFF!"  
She soon figured that this was how students were sorted, and she was slightly surprised when, "Black, Sirius" became a Gryffindor. Soon enough it was her turn, and as her name was called and she stepped toward the hat, she could not help feeling a bit nervous. Professor McGonagall placed the hat on her head and she heard a quiet voice speak soothingly into her ear.  
"No need to be frightened, dear, this isn't going to hurt, I'm only reading your thoughts. Ahh, you're a very clever one, I see, and extremely loyal, fine qualities for either Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. Extremely cunning, and brave, too. My, my, you'd fit exceptionally into any of our four houses. Though I doubt that you'd prosper in Slytherin, you're a mite too innocent, and your morals are too strong. Deep in your head, and in your heart, your bravery is your most powerful strength, so Lily Evans, join your family away from home in GRYFFINDOR!" Lily felt as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders as she walked silently to the Gryffindor house table. She reluctantly found a seat next to Sirius Black, the boy from the train, who had called her Red, and turned her attention to the sorting ceremony.  
Lily paid special attention as the other two boys from the train, who turned out to be Lupin, Remus and Potter, James were both sorted into Gryffindor. She breathed a sigh of relief, because Remus, despite his choice in company, seemed very nice and, she noted silently to herself, not bad looking either. And without at least one friend, she had no hope.  
  
*_* *_* *_* *_* *_* *_* *_* *_* *_* *_* *_*  
  
Lillian Evans sat resolutely staring at the bright dancing flames in the common room fireplace. She held a folded sheet of paper in her shaking hands. It was nearly ten o'clock in the evening, and almost everyone had left the common room. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, and even she didn't notice. Remus sat in an armchair on the other side of the common room, watching her. He'd watched over her all year, and it was nearly April now. Now, she was torn up over whatever was in that letter, and though he was barely older than she, Lily looked so much like somebody's little sister that he felt that he needed to comfort her. The only thing worrying him was that she'd shy away. She seemed to him like the baby bird he'd found, nearly dead, in the woods by his home. He'd brought it into his house, and fed it, but when it was strong enough, it had pecked at his hand when he tried to feed it again. Remus knew enough to know that it reacted this way because it was scared, but it had still hurt him. The bird had flown away one morning, before it was entirely healed, and a couple of days later, he had found its body. After that, Remus had been more careful about giving comfort. Would-be comfort could sometimes make a situation worse.  
Deciding that, at the very least, Lily needed to be told that it was nearly ten, and she ought to get some sleep, Remus walked over and sat down carefully next to her. She didn't even look away from the fire.  
"Lily?" he asked tentatively.  
"What?" she turned her head to look at him, obviously surprised.  
"What's wrong?"  
"Nothing's wrong, why do you ask?" she defended herself quickly. She didn't want him to think that she was a weak-minded little girl.  
"Lily, obviously something's wrong, you're crying, and you've been crying for quite some time," Remus reasoned gently.  
"I haven't been, I'm not-" but Remus had grasped the hand that wasn't holding the sheet of paper and had brought it to her face, which was wet with her tears.  
"You have, you are. What's wrong, Lily?" Remus asked worriedly.  
"My. grandmother." began Lily taking great breaths after every sobbed word. Remus knew that if pressed, she might clam up, so he let her continue at her own pace.  
"My favourite grandmother she died yesterday afternoon. I didn't even get to say goodbye. She's gone, now I'll never get to say goodbye. And, my sister, Petunia, she's the one who wrote the letter," at this she waved the paper, "she tried to make me feel all guilty, because I'm here and she's there, she's sixteen, and, she's a muggle. We used to be really close, until I got my letter, then, she wouldn't have anything to do with me," Lily was now sobbing wholeheartedly, "And you," she sobbed, "Must think I'm a total fruitcake." Remus didn't try to tell her that he didn't know what a fruitcake was, he was more worried about getting Lily calmed down.  
"I don't think you're a fruitcake, Lily, why would I? Because you're crying? That's just ridiculous," Remus reassured her. Lily smiled slightly and hugged Remus, who was a bit taken aback, but began to rub Lily's back gently. The late hour, the taxing nature of the day, and the crying episode all combined to make Lily exceptionally tired, and before Remus could say or do anything about it, indeed, before he even knew it, Lily was asleep in his arms. Not wanting to make her day any worse, Remus just let her sleep. He silently hoped that she would wake up before anyone came down to the common room the next morning, and wondered how that person would react, seeing two first year students laying together on the couch in the common room. 


	3. Into the Future

The Beginning Of Something Good  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own squat. We all know that. ON WITH THE STORY!  
  
Chapter 3: Into the Future  
  
The first thing James Potter noticed when he woke up was Sirius Black, holding a pillow over his face. "Hey! Okay, okay, I'm up! For heavens' sake, Black, what was that for?"  
"You really need to hear this, James! Remember that girl from the train? Name of Lily? The one we marked as a prissy goody two-shoes?" Sirius was clearly very excited.  
"Yeah, why?" James said sleepily, for he was still rather groggy.  
"I think we may have marked her wrong, more than a little," Sirius was now bouncing up and down on the end of James' bed. James just looked at him quizzically. "This morning, some 4th years found her laying on the couch, wrapped up around a boy."  
"WHAT!" James had guessed that Lily was a cute, shy, moralistic, prissy girl. She didn't seem to have many friends, but he'd always thought well of her. She seemed to think that the majority of male teenagers either had no brains or were some form of criminal. She acted downright scared of him and Sirius, but Remus seemed to have reached her. James thought she was cute, but would be about the last person in the world to do something like that in first year.  
"Oh, come now, don't you even want to know who she was found with?" Asked Sirius hyperactively, he waited for a response and, getting none, told him anyway "She was found with Remus!"  
This triggered a stream of very colourful words, all highly inappropriate for an eleven-year-old, not to mention unprintable; to come from James' mouth as he sprinted toward the common room. Sirius followed, seeming to find this extremely funny.  
The scene they found in the common room was rather strange. Lily and Remus were sitting on the couch, Lily turned toward Remus and bawling into his shoulder while Remus attempted to multitask, alternately comforting Lily and trying to cuss at and hex the jeering circle of spectators. It seemed that half the spectators were laughing at them, and half were angry or upset. Those upset appeared to believe that Remus had tried to, and possibly succeeded at, taking advantage of Lily.  
"You imbeciles! Did it not occur to you that I might look a little bit happier if anything had happened?" Shouted Remus, shaking with rage.  
"Than why is she so upset?" Asked an onlooker.  
"Because all of you are accusing her of being a bloody prostitute!" Bellowed Remus.  
"That's it," muttered James, "When they make Remus yell, they've gone too far, SILENCIO!" He shouted. This had very little effect, considering that James hadn't even been able to get a crow to quit cawing, but it did get the group's attention.  
"Now, then, just one question for all of you. Where did you get those sick little minds obviously residing in your heads? You do realize that you're talking about two FIRST YEAR STUDENTS? Meaning that they are eleven years old! What makes you think that they're even capable of something like that? Remus Lupin is the most trustworthy person I know, except maybe Lily Evans, so if they're both telling you something, you can be pretty sure it's true. Now, I suggest that you listen to them. They can probably explain why they were found this morning in that rather, er, compromising position," James stormed this all out very quickly and very loudly. The crowd, slightly shocked at being told off by a first-year, mutely turned their attention to Remus and Lily. Remus opened his mouth to speak, but Lily stopped him, insisting that it would be easier if she told them herself.  
"The truth, in its entirety is that Remus found me sitting here crying yesterday evening. The reason that I was crying was that I had just received word that my grandmother had died. Remus, being kind and considerate, unlike all of you, sat there and listened to me talk myself out. After I had cried all I could, even though I was sleepy, I stayed here, because I didn't really feel like facing my roommates. After I had fallen asleep, Remus couldn't have brought be back to my dormitory because of the spell on the staircase, and didn't have the heart to wake me up, so he just sat here, until, in time, he fell asleep too. And that's how you found us," Lily finished, remarkably composedly for someone whose reputation was on the line.  
"And her reputation shouldn't be tainted because she cried herself to sleep on her best friend's shoulder," added James.  
"And I strongly suggest that all of you make your way to breakfast immediately," said Professor McGonagall, whom nobody had noticed until she had spoken. "And the three of you," she said pointing to Remus, Lily, and James, "Come with me to my office."  
  
(A/N: Let's see, shall I be the evil demon author and leave you there, or not, hm? Okay, I'll be nice and finish the year off.)  
  
"Miss Evans, Mr. Potter, Mr. Lupin, it has come to my attention that you were involved in some sort of shouting match this morning. Would you care to explain?" she asked sternly. Lily explained what had happened calmly, and when she had finished, McGonagall seemed mildly surprised, but not nearly as shocked as they would have expected. "Very well then, Miss Evans, twenty points to Gryffindor for enduring ridicule, Mr. Lupin, twenty points for enduring ridicule, and Mr. Potter, fifteen points to Gryffindor for defending your friends in time of need. The three of you may now go down to breakfast."  
Lily breathed a sigh of relief as she walked down to the Great Hall. She felt rather ill, so she drank some pumpkin juice, but ate nothing. It was Saturday, so at least she didn't have to deal with classes. "She's gone. I don't believe it." She muttered to herself as she walked toward the library.  
"Talking to yourself again, mudblood?" sneered Lucius Malfoy.  
"If, I was, I wouldn't tell you, now, would I?" Lily sneered right back, drawing her wand.  
"Oh, put that thing away, I wouldn't waste my precious time and energy on the likes of you." Malfoy, a rather hefty Slytherin first year, was still sneering.  
"Get out of my way, Malfoy, I haven't got the time or energy to put up with you, and you and I both know I can hex you into oblivion before you can say uncle. Why don't you just waddle back into the swamp you crawled out of," Lily snapped. (A/N: there's that little bit of attitude again.)  
Malfoy, out of ideas, slunk off down the hall, and Lily, smirking, headed towards the common room.  
  
^___^ ^____^ ^____^  
  
It was nearly the end of the school year. Lily was happy that exams were over, happy to be going to see her parents again, after ten long months, but sad to leave her new friends, Remus, James, and Sirius. She was definitely not looking forward to seeing Petunia and her boyfriend, Vernon Dursley. She was sitting at the edge of the lake, thinking about the events of the year, good and bad, and dreading seeing her sister again. She looked at the crystal clear tranquil water and wondered what her future held, a common question among young girls. Deciding that it was pointless to sit here sulking, Lily went back to her dorm to pack. Regardless of how she felt, she had to be on that train the next morning.  
The end of term feast was, as all Hogwarts feasts were, spectacular, but Lily couldn't shake the feeling of dread at seeing her sister again. The same sister who thought that she was a freak. The same sister who used to be Lily's best friend and sole confidante. All the same, Lily got on the scarlet steam engine with the rest of the school, and sat in the same compartment as her best, really her only, friends, Remus, James and Sirius. She had decided that she would not permit herself to cry, giving the three boys reason to believe in feminine weakness. But she had a very hard time of it.  
Lily got off the train, and said her quiet good-byes to the boys and headed off to find her family. Petunia, she noticed was conspicuously absent, frankly, she wasn't surprised. One of Mrs. Evans' personality quirks was her tendency to greet people as though they'd been gone several decades, versus, a week. Mr. Evans, on the other hand, immediately began questioning Lily about the three boys he'd seen her hugging. Lily sighed, she was home, it wasn't ideal, but she'd cope.  
  
(A/N: Okay, there's chapter 3 down. Now I'm at a bit of a loss on the following topics and could use some advice:  
  
Pairings: Lily/James, Lily/Remus, or both?  
  
Should I write about the summer, or just skip right to second year? Ponder ponder ponder.  
  
Should I even bother to include Peter?  
  
Okay, that's it, advice welcome and appreciated.  
  
~~GirlOfTheBlueFiresOfNever~~) 


	4. Escapes and Birthdays

Disclaimer: Don't own squat.  
  
The Beginning Of Something Good Chapter Four  
  
Remus Lupin woke up very early the second day of holidays. For lack of anywhere else to be, he was at James' house. He had a letter to write, and didn't need James bugging him about it. Sirius was arriving that day, and Remus knew he'd have no peace then. He had to write to Lily that morning. He was worried about her. Her muggle sister might be giving her trouble. She was a tough kid, but even she couldn't stand being stabbed in the back by her big sister. Just as he picked up his quill to write, a tiny, enthusiastic little owl, no bigger than a snitch flew right through the open window and bashed into Remus' forehead. It was carrying a roll of parchment at least twice its size and, as soon as Remus unrolled it, it was apparent that Lily had sent it.  
  
Dear Remus: How has your holiday been, all two days of it? I hope you've had a better time than I have. My sister brought her boyfriend home for dinner. They both hate me. What's more, my parents are going to the French Riviera for all of August, and unless I can find somewhere else to stay, I'm stuck with Petunia at Aunt Jessie's house. Aunt Jessie sort of took Petunia's side about the witch thing. I'm screwed. My parents would never let me stay with any of you, even if I was invited, they're too concerned about that incident in the common room actually happening. McGonagall told them. I can hear my dad lecturing me already. Aunt Jessie probably won't even let me do my homework while I'm there, let alone owl you guys. But, you're probably sick or hearing me ramble. Seeya soon.  
Lily  
  
Remus figured that if Lily was sent to stay with her muggle Aunt, she probably wouldn't make it to Hogwarts that fall. He just couldn't see a way to help her. On the top bunk in his room, James rolled over, and off the bed. He hit the floor with a crack, and began cursing rather loudly. Remus chuckled, and used James' distracted state to hide Lily's letter. "Up yet?" Remus quipped.  
James scowled at him, rubbing the back of his neck. "No thanks to you," he muttered. Then, James walked over to his closet, and on top of a pile of hastily tossed shirts, lay Lily's letter. Now it was Remus' turn to curse. "Looks like ickle Reemie has a girlfriend. Maybe you weren't telling the truth on the common room couch." James teased.  
"Read it then," challenged Remus. James, his curiosity piqued, looked down at the piece of parchment in his hand, scanned it quickly, then rubbed his eyes and re-read it. "Well, we've only got one thing to do," he said resolutely, but almost regretfully, "get Evans out of there."  
  
*___* *____* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___*  
  
Lily Evans sat at her desk, writing at a furious speed to finish her homework, of which she had a truckload, before going to Aunt Jessie's. "Oh, devilspawn?" called Petunia in a sickly-sweet voice, "Mother says that your attendance is required at dinner, although I can't imagine why."  
Lily groaned as she headed down to dinner. "Just don't let Vernon be there," she muttered. The great pork of a sixteen-year-old ate more than the Evans family put together. And people like him almost gave the muggle-hating wizards a good excuse. Thankfully, when she got to the kitchen table, Vernon was nowhere to be seen.  
As Lily absently finished her small pile of mashed potatoes, Mrs. Evans said to her husband quietly, "I wonder what's wrong with Lily? She hasn't been herself. She's been about a million miles away, in fact."  
"Knowing you, you're not really wondering, and you've got a theory that you're just itching to tell me." Teased Mr. Evans.  
"Yes, actually. I realize she's only eleven, but I think she my be rather close to one of those boys at the train station."  
"Are you trying to tell me that my eleven year old daughter has a boyfriend?"  
"No! I'm just saying that it might be a possibility."  
"Okay, that's it, I'm getting to the bottom of this." In a louder voice, Mr. Evans asked "Lillian Magdalene Guenivere Evans, do you have a boyfriend?"  
Lily looked at him as though he had two heads, and answered, "No, dad, I do not have a boyfriend. I'm only eleven."  
"Twelve next month," piped up her mother. "Speaking of which-" she was cut off by a large snowy owl flapping through an open window, and, oddly, landing in the nearly empty mashed potato bowl.  
"Must be for me," said Lily cheerily as she untied the letter attached to the owl's leg, thinking, whoever sent this is going to get smacked the next time I see him. There were two letters, the top one in Remus' neat, slanted script, and the other in a hand she didn't recognize, addressed to her parents. She read Remus' letter first, and it was a good thing she did, too.  
  
Dear Lily: James and I have devised a plan to get you out of your visit with your aunt. If you think it will work, you'd best put it into action immediately. The first step is to give the other letter to your parents, it is from the parents of your very close friend, Lena White. If your parents are willing, they'll drop you off at noon at Kings Cross station on July 29th, where we'll pick you up along with "Lena White" we've worked it out completely, even with James' parents. They love the idea, especially Mrs. Potter. Anyhow, good luck, see you soon. Remus  
  
Lily grinned, but then decided that she'd better look over the letter to make sure it was okay before giving it to her parents. The moment she read the first line, Lily knew that the boys couldn't have written it. Mrs. Potter must have written it for them. Lily carefully weighed the possible outcomes, she didn't like the idea of lying to her parents, but she wouldn't be able to stand a whole month with her aunt and her sister. She decided that she might as well try it, if all else failed, she could always escape anyhow. Lily handed the letter to her father. "My friend Lena's invited me to her house from August until we go back to school. May I go, please?" Lily crossed her fingers behind her back as her parents read the letter and conferred. They dismissed Petunia from the table and fired questions at Lily over the next twenty minutes. Finally, they said she could go, and Lily's mother even gave her some extra money, "to buy Lena's parents a thank-you gift from me". Lily rushed upstairs to owl Remus and James that the letter had worked.  
  
*___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___* *___*  
  
The morning of July 29 was bright and sunny, but rather chilly. Lily was feeling a strange bundle of emotions not unlike those she had felt in the days before her first day at Hogwarts. She was happy that she would be away from Petunia for an extra month, guilty that she was lying to her parents, and, something that hardly surprised her, worried about spending the rest of the summer with a family she didn't really know. Her mother called from downstairs that it was time to go, and Lily heaved her giant trunk, which she hadn't been able to shrink, down to the car. Lily crawled into the back seat of the car and opened a brand-new romance novel. Immersed in her book, Lily didn't even realize that they had gotten to King's Cross until her mother opened the back door and began tearful good- byes.  
After assuring her parents that she'd write them as soon as she got to school, Lily waved to her parents and went off to find the boys. Remus, James, and James' parents were standing near platform 9 when Lily found them. Lily dropped her trunk and ran over, squealing, to greet Remus and James as though she hadn't seen them in a year. Then the five portkeyed to the Potter's house to wait for Sirius. One thing that struck Lily was how young and teenager-like the Potters looked. Mrs. Potter couldn't be more than 30, and Mr. Potter wasn't much older. When they got back, James showed Lily her room. It was bright and cheery, with its own bathroom. By this time, it was time to eat and Lily was ravenous. All six of them sat at a small, round table with several large dishes in the center. Lily sat, back straight against the chair while the three boys helped themselves to full plates, and Lily was just wondering how she was going to get any of the food at all when Mrs. Potter stuck her fingers in her mouth and whistled. That got their attention.  
"James Potter! I know that you know better manners than that! If there is one thing drummed into your skull it is how you should treat a lady. Especially a lady who is our guest. I am very disappointed in you," Mrs. Potter had a temper about her it seemed. "I'm sorry, Lily, I was raised with 5 brothers, so fighting for dinner comes naturally to me. I forgot that most girls don't have to deal with several boys in order to get their meals. And although I can't say the same for the other two, James should know better than to forget his manners when there is a real young lady present."  
"It's really all right, Mrs. Potter, I ate with these three surrounding me three meals a day every day for ten months, I can handle them for a few more days," Lily reassured her.  
Wishing to change the subject, Remus immediately suggested that the four children go play quidditch in the back yard.  
"Sounds like fun, you guys go on, we'll finish off cleaning up, and then we might join you." Said Mrs. Potter. Lily followed the boys outside, knowing full well that they'd ask her to get on a broomstick, and wondering how she'd get out of it. She didn't know how to fly, and she hated heights.  
The makeshift quidditch pitch in the Potter's backyard was about half the size of a regular one, with shorter hoops. "Lily, you're just in time. For lack of broomsticks, we're doubling up. You're with Remus," James said, as he got onto the broomstick that Sirius was already sitting on. Lily swore under her breath as Remus slid back on the broomstick, giving her room to sit.  
"You'd better not go too high, Lupin." Lily said threateningly as Remus reached around her to grab the front of the broom. He nodded, smiling, and kicked off, hard. Lily began swearing very colourfully.  
"Don't look down." Remus advised. Lily, of course, did, and nearly fell off the broom. They were hovering about 100 feet above the roof of the Potter house. "Remus, put me down now." Lily said, her face as white as a sheet. Remus, seeing how scared she was, went back down and let her off. Sirius and James, who were watching all of this from a reasonable distance, chuckled at Lily's antics. They too went to the ground.  
"Okay, maybe quidditch wasn't my best idea of all time," said Remus.  
"It's getting dark anyhow," Lily observed, "Let's just go inside."  
  
* * * * * * *  
* * * * *  
Lily awoke to a silent, presumably empty house on the morning of August first. She got up, took a shower, and headed downstairs for breakfast. Going down the stairs, Lily was sure that she heard steps behind her, but when she looked, there was nobody there. 'Creepy,' thought Lily. She made her way to the kitchen and opened the door slowly. She had an odd feeling of foreboding, and then-  
"SURPRISE!" shouted the three Potters, Sirius and Remus. "Happy Birthday!"  
Lily's mouth dropped open, "But I didn't tell you when my birthday was. How'd you know?"  
"Well, there was a birthday cake drawn on your calendar on today's square. Dead giveaway," James shrugged.  
"Thank you, this is great," said Lily gleefully.  
"Presents!" shouted Sirius. Lily got a book from Mr. Potter, a makeup kit from Mrs. Potter, a set of paints from Remus, a collection of joke shop merchandise from Sirius, and a package of canvasses from James. She kissed the three boys each on the cheek. They, along with Mr. Potter blushed furiously, while Mrs. Potter laughed. Lily could safely say that this was her best birthday ever, and it wasn't even ten in the morning yet. 


End file.
